1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to electronics and, more specifically, the present invention relates to a method and apparatus to extract heat from an electrical component on a printed circuit board.
2. Background Information
It is useful to reduce the operating temperature of integrated circuits because high operating temperature degrades reliability. Heat generated in an integrated circuit escapes through the material of the package from regions of higher temperature to regions of lower temperature. The temperature of an integrated circuit depends on the thermal impedance between the integrated circuit and a region of a lower temperature. The flow of heat energy between two points is proportional to the difference in temperature and inversely proportional to the thermal impedance between the two points. Lower thermal impedance corresponds to a lower operating temperature of the integrated circuit for a given power dissipation from the integrated circuit. Heatsinks are often attached to the packages of integrated circuits with mechanical clips or adhesives to reduce thermal impedance.